In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, NBC4 aired a half-hour special on Hispanic culture in our area.

We featured stories that cover history, food, sports and more.

“Los Disturbios de Mount Pleasant” looked at how three days of riots in 1991 transformed D.C.’s Latino community.

More than 32 years ago, the riots broke out in the Northwest D.C. neighborhood of Mount Pleasant after a Latino man was shot by a rookie D.C. police officer.

It was as if guerilla warfare had come to Mount Pleasant, a neighborhood described at one point as the most diverse in the District. But it was also a "powder keg," according to Sharon Pratt, the mayor at the time.

The neighborhood’s history was shaped by the diaspora of Central Americans – mostly Salvadorans – fleeing a country marred by a civil war.

"You just need, you know, a match to be lit. The embers are all there, ready. And that's exactly what happened in '91, is that the embers were ready," BB Otero said.

From the ashes of the uprising came a renewed charge to improve the lives of Latinos in the District. But even today, there are hurdles the community has yet to clear.

We also met the Salvadoran couple behind one of the most celebrated barbecue joints in the D.C. area.

2fifty Texas BBQ opened three years ago, and since then, critics and foodies haven't been able to get enough.

The business has taken off, despite doubts spawned by the time it opened -- April 2020, right at the beginning of the pandemic.

But within a week of opening, a rave review in the Washington Post brought enough hungry customers that the line stretched around the block.

"It's about a commitment to quality," owner and founder Fernando Gonzalez told News4. "We always think about quality, not quantity. It's not about the money, even. It's about portraying our Hispanic heritage into the menu, the best way we can, every single day."

And we sat down with the executive director of the DC Public Library, the son of Cuban immigrants who once had little interest in reading.

Now, he oversees 26 buildings and millions of visitors every year.

Growing up, Richard Reyes-Gavilan was part of a "very close-knit family," all living in the same block of Queens in New York and frequently popping over to each others' buildings to share meals. But, while he grew up visiting the library, he wasn't as excited about the books, he told News4.

"I wasn't a big reader, to be honest with you," he said. "I liked browsing through books, I liked sports, I liked dinosaurs... Really, I just loved being in that big building."

"I remember being excited about this place where I could get free stuff," Reyes-Gavilan said, "That was very cool to me, because we had nothing."

By college, he had developed a love for reading, to the point that he majored in English. His side business was selling books on the street in Manhattan -- and he knew he wanted to continue with a job along those lines, without having to worry about inclement weather.

"I really lean into my Cuban heritage when I start talking about the library," Reyes-Gavilan said. "Especially in 2023, libraries want to be a place of belonging," that represent people who might not otherwise see themselves.

"If this poor Cuban immigrant can become the director of a library system, then, you know, why can't I?"

The Hispanic Heritage Month special aired at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 14. You can watch it in the video player above, on NBCWashington.com and in the NBC Washington app.